Thursday, April 19, 2018

submitted by pippert@augsburg.edu

Jessica Nathanson Scholarly Writing Retreat
Wednesday, May 16 – Friday, May 18, 2018
Dunrovin Christian Brothers Retreat Center

Located on 50 scenic acres of national park in Marine on Saint Croix, Dunrovin’s beautiful wooded grounds are a peaceful, yet professional, setting for group meetings, private getaways, youth or adult groups, and day or overnight retreats.

Do you wish you had uninterrupted time to write / work on scholarship? If so, you will want to take advantage of the annual Jessica Nathanson Scholarly Writing Retreat. Jess established a tradition of allowing faculty and academic staff time away from campus to focus entirely on scholarship. There is no schedule for this retreat – it is simply time and space to work on scholarship. The Provost and the Center for Teaching and Learning will cover the cost of the retreat. We ask that you commit to being present on all three days of the event. Our time begins at 1:00 pm on Wednesday and ends at 1:00 pm on Friday. Space is limited to full-time faculty members.

Questions? Please contact the Center for Teaching and Learning ctl@augsburg.edu
Or visit our website: http://inside.augsburg.edu/ctl/

RSVP

submitted by pike@augsburg.edu

The working group on the University Course Survey revision continues its efforts this spring. We recommend that all faculty to take 15 minutes of class time (as was done with paper and pencil forms) and allow the students to complete the current form on their laptops, phones, or computer lab. Faculty should be absent from the room during this time. It is helpful to tell the students prior to the class session so that they bring their devices and taking the 15 minutes at the beginning of a class session. All evidence indicates that this process will bring the response rates that are of faculty concern to response levels that are reliable and useful.

Also, the new form is being piloted this spring with approximately 30 faculty and thus several hundred students across disciplines and types of courses. The proposed form is designed to assess student perceptions of the quality of their learning experiences in courses and does not directly measure teaching effectiveness or student learning. Those important aspects are better measured in other ways.

Data from the pilot will be presented to the faculty in September. If any additional faculty would like to pilot the new form in summer school courses, please contact group co-leader, Scott Krajewski krajewsk@augsburg.edu by June 8.

Questions or comments are welcome to any member: Kristen Chamberlain, Diane Pike, Terrance Kwame-Ross, Ben Denkinger, and Kelsey Richardson Blackwell. Additional information is on the working group’s web page.

http://go.augsburg.edu/wg2017

submitted by swanson@augsburg.edu

Deadlines are looming for papers, revisions, projects, applications, personal statements. Find help for whatever you are working to finish this semester; visit the Writing Lab. There are only six days left for you to visit the WL this semester. May and summer hours will be posted soon!
Hours for the last week:
Thursday – 12:30–3 p.m.; 3:30–6 p.m., and 7:30–10 p.m.
Friday – 4–6:30 p.m.
Sunday – 5–8 p.m.
Monday – 11:10–1:40 p.m., and 6:30–9:30 p.m.
Tuesday – 12:30–3 p.m.; 3:30–6 p.m., and 7:30–10 p.m.
Wednesday –11:10–1:40 p.m.; 3:30–6 p.m., and 6:30–9 p.m.

submitted by berggg@augsburg.edu

Applying to graduate school this fall or fall 2019? Most masters and doctoral programs, as well as some health professional schools, require the Graduate Records Examination (GRE) for admission. GRE Prep is offered this summer on campus through the Office of Undergraduate Research and Graduate Opportunity. You’ll learn the most effective ways tackle the Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical Writing sections on the GRE.

The course meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 5:30-8 PM for four and a half weeks (May 14th – June 18th). The cost is only $125, which includes the official GRE test-prep book and a 6-month subscription to the online study tool, Magoosh; this is a fraction of the cost when compared to similar classroom GRE prep courses offered by Kaplan or the Princeton Review who charge over $1,000.

New this year, students can also earn a full-refund scholarship! Those who attend 9 of the 10 classes (including the final practice test), will receive a full refund for the course!

Students, Alum who graduated from Augsburg, and staff are also welcome to register.

Register now at the URGO website: http://www.augsburg.edu/urgo/grad/gre-prep/

Questions? Contact the URGO Office at urgo@augsburg.edu or x1446.

submitted by obrienk@augsburg.edu

7 Augsburg seniors were named Fulbright Semi-Finalists this year! 5 were granted an award and 1 named an Alternate.

Kaylee Gueltzow (English Secondary Education & German): Kaylee will be an ETA in Germany where she also plans to organize a book club to spark conversation about the U.S.

Lyle Nyberg (Biology, Chemistry, & Mathematics): Lyle was named an Alternate to Zambia. Lyle applied to do research on malaria transmission at the Southern and Central Africa International Center of Excellence for Malaria Research.

Maddy Oswood (Spanish & Mathematics): Maddy will be an ETA in Spain where she also hopes to start an after-school art club where students can learn about both American and Spanish art.

Jubilee Prosser (Biology): Jubilee will be conducting public health research investigating the barriers to a sense of ownership of at-home water purification technologies in Kenya. She also plans to volunteer at the Maua Methodist Hospital in hygiene and water education for kids.

Blair Stewig (Biology): Blair will be conducting research on colorectal cancer at the International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology in Poland and will also shadow physicians and volunteer at the Maria Skłodowska Curie Memorial Cancer Centre.

Abby Tetzlaff (English): Abby will be an ETA in Germany. She currently teaches an English Language Learning class with MN Literacy Council’s Open Door, and in Germany she hopes to initiate an English-language conversation table open to older students and adults.

Jossel Franco (History): Jossel was named a Semi-Finalist for an ETA to Bulgaria. Though she will not be doing a Fulbright, Jossel received the Puente Cultural Services and Teaching Abroad Grant to teach English in Ecuador. She will be doing TEFL training, working at the CEDEI language institute, and volunteering as an English tutor.

If you are interested in Fulbright, contact urgo@augsburg.edu.

submitted by kipper@augsburg.edu

Wednesday, May 2
11 am
103 Hagfors Center

URGO is hosting a personal statement workshop for pre-health applicants with Naty Lopez, Ph.D., Assistant Dean for Admissions and Diversity at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry. Dr. Lopez is a nurse and counselor by training. She completed her doctoral studies in health professions education at the University of Pennsylvania. Please contact Catherina Kipper at kipper@augsburg.edu to RSVP.